Maritime Jurisdiction Act, 1959

Conservation of the living resources of the sea.

7.—(1) Where the Government, having regard to any international agreement to which the State is a party, are satisfied that it is necessary so to do in order to maintain the productivity of the living resources of the sea, they may by order prescribe and adopt such measures of conservation as they think proper, appropriate to any stock of fish or other marine resources in any area (in this Act called “a fishery conservation area”) of the high seas adjacent to the exclusive fishery limits, and may by order revoke or amend any such order.

(2) Every person who contravenes or attempts to contravene any provision of an order under this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall on summary conviction be liable to the penalties provided by section 223 of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959 , for an offence under that section, and the provisions of that section and of Chapter IV of Part XIII of that Act shall apply to any such offence as if, for references therein to an offence under that Part, there were substituted references to an offence under this section.

(3) A sea fisheries protection officer shall, for the purpose of enforcing an order under this section, have in relation to any sea-fishing fishing boat and the owner, master or crew thereof the like powers as are conferred upon a sea fisheries protection officer by subsection (1) of section 233 of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959 , and the provisions of that section and of section 234 of that Act shall apply accordingly.

(4) In this section, “sea fisheries protection officer”, “sea-fishing boat” and “master” have the same meanings as in Part XIII of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act, 1959 .